Feature Request: Apple Card Enhancements for Couples Sharing Finance

Apple Card is officially available to the public and is of great interest. Although the rewards for a new credit card are not the hallmarks, there are many aspects that make it a compelling choice, including the current registration and approval process, a privacy and security focus developed by Apple's budgeting software, a titanium card, no fees, and more . I'm ready to get one myself, but there are a few things that hold me back and probably others that share finances with my spouse or partner.

As you may have heard before, Apple does not offer the option of receiving an additional Apple Card for a second user. If you are in a kinship relationship, this means that you and your significant other must complete separate Apple Card applications on your iPhone or iPad, which, if approved, will be linked to your Apple ID.

So far, this may not be a problem for many couples, but having separate accounts is not the only complication. The Apple Card offers a great software experience for budgeting and paying your bill, but you don't have access to that software anywhere beyond your iPhone or iPad. And there's no way to export your Apple Card data (at least for now) to third-party budgeting software and other financial applications like you with just about any other credit card (except for the main PDF export). I'm sure this has to do with security and privacy, but it seems like a solvable problem. The Apple Card application may work, which can give couples more visibility in two separate accounts, but for now, this is a noticeable limitation.

For couples who like to share an account while maintaining separate individual accounts, Apple Card may still make sense right now. But those who like to share all their accounts like me and my wife probably think that Apple Card is not an option.

In particular, my wife and I have another unique problem, which I suppose is much smaller than the Apple Consumers are facing. We decide to share our basic Apple ID so that we can have a single photo library to manage instead of two (not possible with Family Sharing) and then use separate iMessage and FaceTime IDs. I've written about this before and would love to see a separate login option specifically for Photos. But in any case, this makes the Apple Card even more challenging, as there seems to be no way to use a different Apple ID from the one set as your iPhone or iPad's primary account when signing up for a credit card. This means that only one of us can sign up for an Apple Card.

Apple Card Enhancements for Couples Sharing Finance

With Apple's focus on Apple Card security and privacy, I think the option of an additional holder of the a card may arrive before it allows users to export their financial data and integrate it with third-party software. There may be more risk and responsibility to having two cards in an account than one, but Apple already has the logistics understood for Goldman Sachs and its country. As far as users are concerned, it would be easy to have another switch that locks the secondary card just like the primary one in the Wallet app.

(There is also probably a huge group of teens who would want to receive an Apple Card as a secondary user under their parent's account.)

Although I think the Apple Card data is exported outside of PDF files will probably come after the option for additional users (if any), I think that's important for Apple to do. Many users will want to include Apple Card data with their other financial accounts to see their big picture. On the other hand, more Apple Card users (or potential users) may want the export option because they affect both individuals and couples, so Apple may have a chance to make it available before cards for additional users.

Partial or temporary solution may be an Apple iOS application on an Apple Card that will allow users to share data with their partner or spouse. This may be a way for Apple to maintain its focus on security and privacy by offering account visibility, but keeping within its own app instead of including third-party apps.

What do you think? Want to become an Apple Card user but wait for the data export option and / or the ability to add an additional user? Share your thoughts in the comments below!